Crean, McGiff Push to Strip Mayor of Gas Access, Credit Card

Controversy continued to swirl at Monday night as two trustees sought to have Mayor Paul Pontieri's access to the Village gas pump cut off.

The motion, which came from trustee Gerald Crean, to force the mayor to relinquish his key to the gas pump comes a few weeks after Crean and fellow trustee Stephen McGiff Pontieri of illegally accessing the pump to fill up his private vehicle over a four-year-period.

Crean cited a made by the New York State Comptroller in 1977, which set a precedent that a mayor and trustee of a village can only be compensated for gas use through either reimbursement of expenses or by reasonable mileage allowance.

A dated Jan. 23 from McGiff and Crean to their fellow trustees also calls on the board to pass a resolution directing the village attorney to seek recovery of $17,000 from the mayor, the value of gas McGiff and Crean estimate Pontieri has pumped into his personal vehicle over the four-year period.

"In doing so, we can avoid exposing this Board to a taxpayer lawsuit, recover funds illegally and without authorization taken by the Mayor, and ensure that the resident's tax dollars are being spent in accordance with the law in the future," the letter reads. 

Pontieri told Patch earlier this month that using a gas pump at the Village's municipal garage at around $3 a gallon actually saves Village taxpayer money instead of the mayor seeking reimbursement at 50 cents per mile.

McGiff seconded Crean's motion and the both of them voted in support. Trustees Jack Krieger and Lori Devlin voted in opposition. As Joseph Keyes was not in attendance while he is recovering from surgery, trustee William Hilton was left to break the tie and he chose to abstain.

Crean also attempted to make a motion to direct the Village clerk to put an exact monetary amount on the gas Pontieri has used from the Village pump, but Pontieri ended his report before it could go further.

Later in the meeting, McGiff attempted to place motions that would send the review of the issue to a third party and relinquish the mayor's credit card to the Village clerk. Pontieri allowed the motions, but when put to a vote they were defeated 3-2, with Hilton this time voting with Krieger and Devlin.

“I have the biggest problem is the word stealing, until the mayor is able to give a proper explanation. When you say to somebody they are stealing to someone, that is like calling someone a liar. The wording just takes it to another level. I don't even want to vote, I'm not going to vote for anything more that's why I abstained from the one before,” Hilton said. “If you say they are stealing, you are proving someone guilty before they have the chance to do it.”

Earlier in the meeting, Pontieri said that the Village would be creating a standing committee of 5-7 people overseen by Village Attorney Brian Egan to oversee issues such as these. The committee would be made up of residents appointed by the Board of Trustees.

Resident George Euler stood up during the public comment portion of the meeting and stated that while he is not for or against the mayor, that as long as Pontieri has already turned in his credit card then it should not be an issue.

“Why are we beating this camel to death," Euler said. "Let the process take its course, and when that happens if he is guilty then he has to pay the piper."

Pontieri told Euler that he has already turned those documents in.

Pontieri has called the allegations from McGiff and Crean "ugly politics."

"It's not about the taxpayer," he earlier this month. "It's about the election."

Pontieri, Devlin and Krieger are currently running against McGiff to continue in their current mayor and trustee positions, the former on Patchogue 2012 and the latter on Residents First. Thomas Ferb is also running for trustee with Patchogue 2012, and Gregory Powers and Lisa Ihne are running for trustee with Residents First with Elisabeth McGuire running for mayor.

The election will take place March 20.